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The Resource Curse: A Statistical Mirage?

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  • Alexander James

    (Department of Economics and Public Policy, University of Alaska Anchorage)

Abstract

A surprising feature of resource-rich economies is slow growth. It is often argued that natural-resource production impedes development by creating market or institutional failures. This paper establishes an alternative explanation - a slow-growing resource sector. A declining resource sector is disproportionally reflected in resource-dependent countries but appears to have little affect on the rest of the economy. More generally, this paper illustrates the importance of considering industry composition in cross-country growth regressions.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander James, 2014. "The Resource Curse: A Statistical Mirage?," Working Papers 2014-03, University of Alaska Anchorage, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ala:wpaper:2014-03
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    File URL: http://www.econpapers.uaa.alaska.edu/RePEC/ala/wpaper/ALA201403.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Resource Dependence; Economic Growth; Resource Curse;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q2 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation
    • Q3 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development

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